Switch operator



Sept 18, 1956 s, BROOKS ET AL SWITCH OPERATOR Filed Jan. 9, 1956 7 2 a 9 a 9 2 w w 2 I 9 l 0 2% I 1 L 4 a P a l W h K, -2W 2 my m I M 3 w a a a q a w IN V EN TORS H. BROOKS P. TA PP SAMUEL BY NELSON United States Patent SWITCH OPERATOR Samuel H. Brooks and Nelson P. Tapp, Euclid, Ohio, as-

signors to Clevite Corporation, Cleveland, Ohio, :1 am poration of ()hio Application January 9, 1956, Serial No. 557,927

6 Claims. (Cl. ZOO-51.09)

This invention relates to a break-away switch operator.

Various types of equipment having self-contained electrical power supplies are required to be kept de-energized prior to being put into use, so as not to waste the available power. In the use of many such equipments the electrical components therein are to be energized initially in response to the pulling apart of a break-away connector. Often there are several components or circuits which are to be energized independently of one another, and in many instances they are to be energized in a desired sequence, rather than simultaneously.

The present invention is directed to a switch operator of the break-away connector type which is particularly adapted for use on equipments of the type just described.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel switch operator which operates in response to the pulling apart of a break-away connector.

Also, it is an object of this invention to provide such an operator which is adapted to actuate a plurality of switches in a desired sequence.

Other and further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the present switch operator, with the parts of the break-away connector connected together; r Figure 2 is a transverse section taken alongthe line 2-2 in Fig. 1 and showing the safety pin retaining theparts in the Fig. 1 position; and

Figure 3 is a longitudinal section through the switch operator, with the parts of the break-away connector having been pulled apart.

Referring to the drawing, there is provided a breakaway connector, one part of which is a plug unit which comprises in part an outer sleeve and a filler 11 of hardened plastic material within said sleeve. Secured centrally within the plastic filler 11 and rigidly held in place thereby is a tubular housing member 12, which extends axially through the integral assembly of outer sleeve 10 and the filler 11. At its forward end the housing member 12 is formed with a reduced diameter neck 13 and a ball-shaped protrusion 14 larger than the neck 13.

A flanged sleeve 15 is snugly received within the axial bore 12a of housing member 12. Sleeve 15 is formed with an inturned flange 16 at its forward end abutting against an O-ring 17, which is clamped in place between this end of sleeve 15 and a transverse internal shoulder 18 on the housing member 12. An annular plug 19 is threadedly received in the opposite end of the central passage 12a in housing member 12 and abuts against the open rear end of sleeve 15.

Forward of shoulder 18 the internal bore of housing member 12 is of reduced diameter, just large enough for reciprocatory plunger 20 to have a sliding fit therein.

ice

This section of the bore is designated by the reference numeral 12b in Fig. 1. The bore section 12b terminates at a transverse internal shoulder 120, which faces away from the ball-shaped protrusion 14. Forward of shoulder 12 there is provided an axial bore 22 of even smaller diameter, which extends centrally through the neck 13 and ball-shaped protrusion 14 on housing member 12.

Plunger 26 extends slidably through the central bore 19a of plug 19, the central axial bore 15a of sleeve 15, the 0-ring 17, and the reduced diameter bore 12b in housing member 12 forward of shoulder 18. Plunger 20 has an integral reduced diameter forward end 21 which projects through the axial bore 22 extending through the reduced neck 13 and the ball-shaped protrusion 14 on housing member 12. A transverse forwardly facing shoulder 23 is formed at the juncture of this reduced diameter extension 21 and the main portion of plunger 20. This plunger shoulder 23 is adapted to engage the passage shoulder 12c to limit the movement of the plunger to the left in the drawing. Within the sleeve 15 the plunger 20 has a reduced neck 24, at which is mounted a washer 25 snugly, but slidably, received in the central bore 15a of sleeve 15. A coil spring 26 is under compression between this washer and the forward end of nut 19, so as to bias the plunger 20, 21 to the left in the drawing.

At its rear end the plunger 20 carries a frusto-conical member 27. A pair of normally-closed precision snap-acting switches 23 and 29 are mounted fixedly with respect to the housing unit made up of sleeve 10, filler 11, member 12 and sleeve 15. These switches have their respective reciprocatory actuators 28a and 29a positioned to be engaged by the periphery of member 27. In the illustrated embodiments the switches are in different positions with respect to the direction of movement of plunger 20 so as to be operated by member 2'7 at different times.

The other half of the break-away connector is a socket unit made up of an outer sleeve 30, a flanged, generally cylindrical, longitudinally split spring clip 31 mounted therein, a plug 32 within spring clip 31, and an end cap 33. The plug 32 at its forward end terminates in a concave surface 34 which is shaped complementary to the periphery of a ball-shaped protrusion 14. Forwardly of this concave plug surface 34 the spring clip 31 is inturned, so as to snugly grip the spherical periphery of ball-shaped protrusion 14 immediately forward of neck 13, as shown in Fig. 1.

The outer sleeve 30 of the socket unit is crimped over at its rear end 30a to lock the end cap 33 in place abutting against the flange 32a on plug 32. In turn, the plug flange 32a abuts against the rear flange 31a on spring clip 31 and maintains the latter seated against an internal transverse shoulder 30b on sleeve 30. The plug 32 is formed with an internal chamber 35, which is open at the rear end of the plug. A cable 36 extends through the central opening 37 in end cap 33 and into the chamber 35, where it is rigidly affixed to plug 32.

Referring back to the plug unit in the present breakaway connector, there is provided a transverse bore 40 which extends through the outer sleeve 10, the filler 11, and the housing member 12 and transversely intersects the reduced diameter section 1212 of the central passage through housing member 12 just behind the transverse shoulder 12c therein. A safety pin 41 having a reduced neck segment 42 adjacent its inner end is adapted to be inserted into bore 41 to position its reduced neck portion 42 in engagement with the transverse shoulder 23 on plunger 20, as best seen in Fig. 2.

In operation, when the socket unit is connected to the ball-shaped protrusion 14, the outer end of the reduced diameter extension 21 of plunger 20 engages the concave closed inner end face 34 of plug 32 in the socket unit.

Accordingly, plunger 20 is retracted against theses;

exerted spring 26 and the frusto-conical member 27 on the rear end of plunger 20 engages and depresses the switch actuators 28a andwa, thereby opening these switches. V r I At the same time, the safety pin 41 is positioned in the transversebore 40 and has its reduced neck 42 en gaging the shoulder 23 on plunger 20 to maintainthe plunger retracted even if the socket unit should be re- Qv d-I r To release the plunger Zi) from its "retracted position and thereby operate switches 28 and 29, the safety pin 41 is first removed by pnllingjit manually out of trans verse bore 40. I Thernby exerting a manual pull on cable 36 the socket unitis removed from the ball-shaped protrusion 14. When this happens, the plunge 1:20 is free to move under the influence of spring 26 to the position shown in Fig. 3 The resultant movement of frusto-coni cal-member"2 7 to the left in the drawing disengages the periphery of this frusto con ical member rro rnboth of the switch pIungersgZSa and 2911, so that the switches assume their normally closed conditions. The-switching action takes place at different times due to the different positions of the; switch plungers. I

v From the fdr'egoing it will be apparent that the specific device illustrated i n the accompanying drawing is particularly well adapted for use as a switch operator of the break away connector type. However, his to be understood that, while there has been described hereinand illust r ated in thc accompanying drawing a specific preferred embodiment of the present invention, various modificatiohsiomissi'ons and refinements which depart from the disclosed embodiment may be adopted without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

Weclaim: V V r 1. In combination, housing means terminating at one end in a rounded protrusion and having a passage which extends through said rounded protrusion, a plunger reciprocable in said passage, means yieldably biasing said plunger to project at one end beyond said rounded protrusion, and a socket complementary to said rounded protrusion and having provision for gripping said rounded protrusion, said: socket having a closed inner end for engagementwithisaid one end of the plunger to retract the ph h geragainst itsspring bias when said rounded protrusion heated in the socket. I V

A switch operator comprising housing means terrni'nating at oneend in a ball-shaped protrusion and having"alengthwise passage which extends through said ballshaped protrusion, a plunger reciprocable in said passage, spring means biasing said plunger to project at one end beyond said'ball-shaped protrusion, and a socket shaped and dimen sione d to tightly grip said ball-shaped protrusioh when mounted thereon and manually releasable therefrom, said socket having a concave closed inner end shaped "com lementary to said ball-shaped protrusion to engage said one end of the plunger and retract the plunger against its spring bias when said ball-shaped protrusion is seated in the socket.

3. A switch operator comprising housing means terminating at one end in a rounded protrusion and having a lengthwise passage which extends through said rounded protrusion, said housing meahs presenting a transverse shoulder in said passage intermediate the length of the passage, a plunger reciprocable in said passage and having a transverse "shoulder inte'rme'diateit's length for en age meittwith'said shoulder in said" passage, spring' "-'riieans biasing said plunger to position the plunger shoulder in engagement with said shoulder in said passage with the plunger projecting at one end beyond said rounded protrusion, and a socket constructed to grip said rounded protrusion and having a closed inner end for engagement with said one end of the plunger to retract the plunger against its spring bias when said rounded protrusion is seated in the socket.

4. The switch-operator of claim 3, wherein said housing means has a transverse passage intersecting said lengthwise passage behind said shoulder in said lengthwise passage, and wherein there is provided a pin releasably received in said transverse passage and projecting into said lengthwise passage to engage said plunger shoulder to maintain the plunger retracted.

S A switch operator comprising housing means tenni nating at one end in a ball-shaped protrusion and having a lengthwise passage which extends through said ball shaped protrusion, said housing means presenting intermediate the length of said passage a tranverse shoulder facing awayfrom said ball-shaped protrusion, a plunger reciprocable in said passage and having a transverse'shoulder intermediate its length facing said shoulder in said passage, spring means biasing said plunger toward said ball-shaped protrusionto position said shoulder on the plunger engaging said shoulder in said passage with the plunger projectihg at one end beyond said ball-shaped protrusion, said plunger also extending beyond the opposite end of said passage when springbiased to project beyond said ballshaped protrusion, and a socket having means for gripping said ball-shaped protrusion when mounted thereon and manually releasable from said ball-shaped protrusion, said socket having aconcave closed inner end shaped complementary to said ball-shaped protrusion for engagement with said one end of the plunger to retract the plunger against its spring bias when said ball shape'd protrusion is seated in the socket. V i 6. The switch operator of claim 5, wherein said housing means has a transversepassage intersecting said lengthwise passage adjacent said shoulder therein, and wherein there is provided a pin manually releasably received in said transverse'passage and projecting intosaid lengthwise passage to engage said plunger shoulder and maintain the plunger retracted;

Noreferences cited. 

